TubaOrNotTuba

This afternoon, I cleared the deck for winter. For real. All of the furniture is now stowed below, and I realize that no wind will ever move this stuff away. The largest piece (the table) cannot be lifted by one person. However, it does slide downhill, on its own. And that final flip, behind the veil of the ladder, is just a wish and a push. No need to consider the uphill trip until after our return to grass cutting season.

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Cue my trepidation. This is the one day of the year when strangers are apt to come to the door. Plus, I’m expected to give them “treats” out of fear of receiving “tricks”. I worry, from sunrise to sunset. And then, like a balloon with a small leak, the whole thing dissolves into not much at all. In the last three hours, four visitors. Almost exactly the number we received, certain years, in the big city. I can now put away the remainder of our goodies, as a store against winter.

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This was a good day for the main car. For our finances, not so much, but being in a zone without any public transit, certain costs are implicit. Anyhow, as of this morning, the car is inspected, licenses (OK renewed), has better brakes and shiny new spark plugs. In a world of fuel injection, I’d almost forgotten about those little instances of fire, furiously doing their thing, four times per engine cycle. And in a world of “small motor means higher RPMs”, that’s a lot.

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Attached to our landline telephone is a secret service. The phone company accepts messages, on our behalf. Stores them, out of sight and out of mind until we dial a specific code and walk through the nested menus. Of course, there’s no flashing light; just some odd beeps when you dial out to another line. This is the dawn of a modern age, and we do answer the phone if it rings (a chance to speak to that nice man from the computer company who offers to fix my virus (which he never does, but that’s a different story). Rarely do we call anyone, so the beeps never get triggered. Back to the present tale.

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If the latest trickery by the provincial government is any indication, our whole system is in a state of gridlock. The provincial parliament introduced a bill, which went to the courts. The court declared the bill (not yet a law) to be unconstitutional in tone. The provincial government, in a move that may redefine “classic”, decided to invoke the notwithstanding clause. Now what?

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There are four planets arrayed along the ecliptic right now. Would be quite a view, except for some misplaced clouds. Oh well, maybe this time tomorrow.

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When I start seeing ads, often, for a new roof AND solar panels, it could be that someone wants me to consider my possibilities. I know; I live too far north for the sun to do much more than help stuff grow, but there is that passive energy place just down the road. They haven’t succumbed to frostbite, yet.

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Keep the drama levels high. The NAFTA talks were to end today, based on a presidential edict. Except that they didn’t. He doesn’t have that much “juice”. He did send a letter to the legislative house, saying that he had an agreement in principle with Mexico, and that Canada could join the party later, if it wished.  Somehow, this doesn’t have the same impact as what he promised.

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Vacation time. Visitors. A doubling (temporary) of the dog population around here.  The two are old friends; in occasional proximity for much of their lives. No new challenges here.

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A shout out to the post office, who seem to have figured out parcel delivery. When the white car with the flashing lights pulled into the library, I barely made it to the sidewalk before the driver was out with a parcel in hand. There were customs duties owed, and there was a nifty machine in tow, to read my C/C and expedite payment. Total halt, under two minutes. When I compare that to a generation ago, where receiving a shipment from outside the country required study in the tariff manuals, a trip up to the third floor of the Dominion Building and a lien on the soul of my firstborn  (he doesn’t know about that)… we’ve made some serious progress. Not exactly free trade, but better than it used to be.

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